SettingsKit Solution

SettingsKit is a lightweight, MVVM‑friendly, version‑tolerant JSON settings library for .NET applications.
It provides automatic persistence, schema migration, backup/restore, and optional encryption for sensitive fields — all with a clean, strongly‑typed API.

Perfect for WPF, WinUI, Avalonia, MAUI, console apps, and any .NET project that needs reliable user or app settings.

---

📦 Installation

Install via NuGet:

Install-Package Omostan.SettingsKit

or .NET CLI:

dotnet add package Omostan.SettingsKit

---

Repository Structure

SettingsKit/
│
├── SettingsKit/
│   ├── Core/
│   │   ├── ObservableObject.cs
│   │   ├── SettingsService.cs
│   │   ├── ISettingsMigration.cs
│   │
│   ├── Security/
│   │   ├── EncryptedAttribute.cs
│   │   ├── EncryptionHelper.cs
│   │
│   ├── SettingsKit.csproj
│
├── ConsoleDemo/
│       ├── Program.cs
│       ├── Settings/
│       │   ├── AppSettings.cs
│       │   ├── AppSettingsMigration_1_to_2.cs
│       │   ├── CredentialSettings.cs
│       │   └── SettingsManager.cs
│       │   
│       ├── ConsoleDemo.csproj
│       
├── WpfDemo/
│       ├── App.xaml
│       ├── App.xaml.cs
│       ├── MainWindow.xaml
│       ├── MainWindow.xaml.cs
│       ├── Commands/
│       │   └── RelayCommand.cs
│       ├── Helpers/
│       │   └── PasswordBoxHelper.cs
│       ├── Models/
│       │   └── CredentialModel.cs
│       │   └── UiModel.cs
│       │   └── WinPosModel.cs
│       ├── Settings/
│       │   ├── migrations/
│       │   │   └── UiSettingsMigration_1_to_2.cs
│       │   └── SettingsManager.cs
│       ├── ViewModels/
│       │   └── BaseViewModel.cs
│       │   └── MainViewModel.cs
│       │   
│       ├── WpfDemo.csproj
│
├── .github/
│   ├── workflows/
│   │   └── publish.yml
│   └── ISSUE_TEMPLATE.md
│
├── README.md
├── CHANGELOG.md
├── CONTRIBUTING.md
├── LICENSE
└── Directory.Build.props

---

✨ Features

• Strongly‑typed settings models
• MVVM‑friendly (INotifyPropertyChanged built in)
• Automatic JSON persistence
• Auto‑save on property change
• Version‑aware schema migration
• Automatic backup & restore
• Optional DPAPI encryption for sensitive fields
• Generic SettingsService for unlimited settings groups
• Zero dependencies (pure .NET)

---

🚀 Quick Start

1. Create a settings model

public class UiSettings : SettingsBase
{
    public double WindowWidth { get; set; } = 800;
    public double WindowHeight { get; set; } = 600;
}

2. Initialize the service and bind directly in MVVM

public class SomeViewModel : ViewModelBase
{
    var uiSettings = new SettingsService<UiSettings>(
        filePath: "ui.json",
        currentVersion: 1
    );
    
    public UiSettings Ui => uiSettings.Settings;
    
    --- other properties and logic ---
    --- whereby ViewModelBase implements INotifyPropertyChanged and raises notifications when UiSettings properties change ---
}

3. Use in XAML

<Window ...>
    <StackPanel>
        <TextBox Text="{Binding Ui.WindowWidth, UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" />
        <TextBox Text="{Binding Ui.WindowHeight, UpdateSourceTrigger=PropertyChanged}" />
    </StackPanel>
</Window>

4. Auto‑save happens automatically

Whenever WindowWidth or WindowHeight changes, the settings are automatically saved to ui.json with the new values. No need to call save() methods manually - SettingsKit listens for property changes and handles persistence seamlessly.

🛠️ Advanced Usage

• Migrations: Implement ISettingsMigration to handle schema changes across versions.
• Encryption: Use [Encrypted] attribute on properties to automatically encrypt/decrypt sensitive data using DPAPI.
• Multiple Settings Groups: Create multiple SettingsService<T> instances for different settings categories (e.g. UserSettings, AppSettings).
• Custom Paths: Configure custom file paths and directories for settings storage.
• Backup & Restore: Use built‑in backup and restore methods to safeguard user settings.
• Error Handling: Customize error handling and logging for settings operations.
• Cross‑Platform: Works seamlessly on Windows, Linux, and macOS with .NET Core/5+/6+.
• Unit Testing: Easily mock SettingsService<T> for unit testing your view models and services.
• Performance: Optimized for fast load/save operations even with large settings models.
• Extensibility: Extend core functionality by inheriting from SettingsBase and implementing custom logic as needed.

🔄 Schema Migration

Add migration steps when your settings evolve:

public class UiSettingsMigration_1_to_2 : ISettingsMigration<UiSettings>
{
    public int FromVersion => 1;
    public int ToVersion => 2;

    public UiSettings Migrate(UiSettings old)
    {
        old.WindowHeight = 600;
        old.Version = 2;
        return old;
    }
}

Register it:

uiSettings.AddMigration(new UiSettingsMigration_1_to_2());

🔐 Encrypt Sensitive Settings

public class Credentials : SettingsBase
{
    [Encrypted]
    public string ApiKey { get; set; }
}

SettingsKit automatically encrypts on save and decrypts on load.

🛟 Backup & Restore

SettingsKit automatically creates a .bak file before saving. If the main file becomes corrupted, it restores from backup.

Build, Package and Publish to NuGet

1. Build the project in Release mode.

cd /d/Tutorials/SettingsKit && dotnet build SettingsKit/SettingsKit.csproj -c Release

2. Create the NuGet package:

cd /d/Tutorials/SettingsKit && dotnet clean SettingsKit/SettingsKit.csproj && dotnet pack SettingsKit/SettingsKit.csproj -c Release --output ./nupkg

3. Publish to NuGet:

cd /d/Tutorials/SettingsKit && dotnet nuget push ./nupkg/Omostan.SettingsKit.1.0.x.nupkg -k YOUR_NUGET_API_KEY -s https://api.nuget.org/v3/index.json

📦 NuGet Package Description (Guide)

Short Description (NuGet summary field)

Strongly‑typed, MVVM‑friendly JSON settings library with auto‑save, migration, backup, and encryption.

Long Description (NuGet description field)

SettingsKit is a lightweight, strongly‑typed JSON settings library for .NET applications. It provides automatic persistence, MVVM‑friendly change tracking, version‑aware schema migration, backup/restore, and optional DPAPI encryption for sensitive fields.

Ideal for WPF, WinUI, Avalonia, MAUI, and console applications that need reliable user or app settings.

Key features include:

• Strongly‑typed settings models
• Auto‑save on property change
• Version‑aware schema migration
• Automatic backup & restore
• Optional encryption for sensitive data
• Zero dependencies (pure .NET)

🤝 Contributing

Contributions and pull requests are welcome! If you have ideas for improvements or new features, feel free to open an issue.